Come Dine With Me Canada brings together bold home cooks from across the country, and Toronto’s Jack Showers stands out with his laid-back “California Italian” style shaped by years of devouring Bon Appétit videos. By day, he works in tech sales, but by night, he’s perfecting creative dishes for TikTok, and this festive Sticky Toffee “Stuffing” Pudding is his holiday showstopper. Warm, nostalgic, and playful, it’s a cozy-season dessert that feels like Christmas in a ramekin.
Holiday Sticky Toffee “Stuffing” Pudding
Ingredients:
For Pudding Base
- 200 g chopped dates
- ¾ cup boiling water + 1 tsp baking soda
- ⅓ cup butter
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ cups flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla
For Mix-ins
- 1 green apple, diced and tossed in lemon juice
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup toasted walnuts
- Cinnamon + pinch nutmeg + pinch clove
For Rosemary Toffee Sauce
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup butter
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- Small sprig fresh rosemary
- Pinch salt
To Serve
- Scoop of vanilla cream
Directions:
- Make pudding base: Combine dates, boiling water, and baking soda; let soften. Cream butter + sugar; add eggs + vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, salt, then fold in dates. Bake in an 8-inch pan at 350°F for ~30 min. Let cool.
- Assemble stuffing mixture: In a bowl, gently toss the pudding cubes with lemon-dressed green apple, cranberries, nuts, and spices.
- Make rosemary toffee sauce: Melt butter + brown sugar until smooth. Add cream, rosemary sprig, and salt. Simmer 2–3 minutes, then remove rosemary.
- Bake: Spoon mixture into greased ramekins with a generous drizzle of rosemary toffee sauce over each. Reserve some toffee sauce to finish. Bake at 350°F for 10–12 min, just to warm through and meld.
- Serve: Drizzle remaining rosemary toffee sauce over each ramekin and top with a big scoop of ice cream.
